TICKETS FOR MEN’S AND WOMEN’S NATIONALS IN CHARLOTTE NOW ON SALE
Photo by: C. Kerns Photography
[EDEN PRAIRIE, MN, January 8, 2025] — On the heels of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Games, sports fans from North Carolina and across the country have an opportunity to watch elite curling live, when the 2026 USA Curling Men’s & Women’s National Championships get underway at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte. Tickets are on sale now.
Eight teams of each gender will compete in Charlotte for the right to represent the United States at the 2026 World Women's Championship (Calgary, AB, Canada, March 14-22) and the World Men’s Championship (Ogden, UT, March 27-April 24). Fans can choose tickets for Single Sessions, Full Day Passes, a Weekend Pass, or an All Sessions package.
The Men’s field is headlined by Team Shuster, skipped by five-time Olympian John Shuster. In November, this veteran team lost the final of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Curling to Team Casper, who will represent the country at the upcoming Milan-Cortina Games. Apart from that loss, Shuster and his teammates (Chris Plys, Colin Hufman, Matt Hamilton) are enjoying a stellar season and will be looking to cap the year by wearing the Stars & Stripes in Ogden. Other top contenders in the field include Trials competitors Team Stopera (Andrew Stopera, Tom Howell, Mark Fenner, Lance Wheeler), perennial Nationals competitors Team Dunnam (Scott Dunnam, Cody Clouser, Alex Leichter, Andy Dunnam), and rising young teams like Wendling (Wes Wendling, Ethan Sampson, Jake Zeman, Marius Kleinas), and Team Tuma (Sam Strouse, Coleman Thurston, Kevin Tuma, Connor Kauffman).
On the Women’s side, U.S. Olympic Team Trials silver medalists Team Cousins (Elizabeth Cousins, Annmarie Dubberstein, Allison Howell, Liz Janiak) look to move one spot higher on the podium at the Nationals. They will be challenged by a field that includes Trials competitors Team Strouse (Delaney Strouse, Anne O'Hara, Sydney Mullaney, Madison Bear), Team McMakin (Christine McMakin, Jordan Hein, Susan Dudt, Tessa Thurlow), and Team Stopera (Megan Stopera, Addison Neill, Ella Fleming, Savannah Koch). Stopera and her teammates will also compete in the USA Curling U-20 Nationals later this season.
“Every four years, sports fans fall in love with curling during the Olympic Games,” noted USA Curling CEO Dean Gemmell. “But our best players are competing every year, and bringing an elite-level event to Charlotte is exciting. I’m confident anyone who hasn’t seen the sport live will find it adds a whole new element they don’t get when watching on television.”
More information about the 2026 Men’s & Women’s Nationals will be added to the Championships page on the USA Curling website.
MEN’S TEAMS
Team Shuster (John Shuster, Chris Plys, Colin Hufman, Matt Hamilton)
Team A. Stopera (Andrew Stopera, Tom Howell, Mark Fenner, Lance Wheeler)
Team Dunnam (Scott Dunnam, Cody Clouser, Alex Leichter, Andy Dunnam)
Team Tuma ( Sam Strouse, Kevin Tuma, Coleman Thurston, Connor Kauffman)
Team Wendling (Ethan Sampson, Wes Wendling, Jake Zeman, Marius Klenias)
Team Mansell (Elliot Mansell, Daniel Dudt, Sean Franney, Simon Jarrett)
Team Hodek (Tim Hodek, Evan Workin, Josh Moore, Nathan Parry)
Team McMullin (Carson McMullin, Caidan Rose, Will Podhrasky, Ethan Macomber)
WOMEN’S TEAMS
Team Cousins (Elizabeth Cousins, Annmarie Dubberstein, Allison Howell, Liz Janiak)
Team Strouse (Delaney Strouse, Anne O’Hara, Syndey Mullaney, Madison Bear)
Team M. Stopera (Megan Stopera, Addison Neill, Ella Fleming, Savannah Koch)
Team McMakin (Christine McMakin, Jordan Hein, Susan Dudt, Tessa Thurlow)
Team Weldon (BriAnna Weldon, Sarah Walsh, Abigail Lin, Kate Garfinkel)
Team Rhyme (Kim Rhyme, Stephanie Senneker, Libby Brundage, Anya Normandeau)
Team Podoll (Ann Podoll, Rachel Kawleski, Mackenzie Richie, Rachel Workin)
Team Pekowitz (Julia Pekowitz, Kalina Petrova, Lila Farwell, Alexa Pekowitz)
About USA Curling
Founded in 1958 and headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, USA Curling is the National Governing body for the Olympic sport of curling and the Paralympic sport of wheelchair curling in the United States. The mission of USA Curling is to grow, strengthen, and advocate for the Olympic and Paralympic sport of curling in the United States by prioritizing accessibility and programmatic development from grassroots to podium. USA Curling is sponsored by Columbia Sportswear, the Dale’s family of beers, Twin Cities Orthopedics, Training HAUS, Ice, Sports & Solar (ISS), Rock Solid Productions, Jet Ice, and Laurie Artiss. USA Curling is a proud member of World Curling and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. To learn more, visit usacurling.org.
